I found the meditations to be stilted and poorly written. They are so heavily laden with 12 step language that only a committed member of OA would be comfortable with it. The 12 steps are not the only way to go, and in fact are quite likely NOT the best way.

This book should have been 2-3 chapters long. The content didn't move me to make life changes like some other things I've read. I wouldn't recommend it.

I bought one copy of this book five years ago, then ordered an entire case from the publisher... to give to my friends who struggle with a compulsive eating disorder, too. Susan Ward, thank you for writing with such acceptance, such insight, such good sense, and such restraint. Each entry helps me toward honesty, humility, and hope; each day I sit on the throne and regain my sense of self and hope in my own ability to recover. No real religious stuff, but gentle, healthy, spirited, friendly words. Buy it, then buy lots more and give them away! nancy

I bought this course hoping to learn the language, but I was in for some disappointment. Dialogues: you don't quite know what they say, the vocab lists give you only some of the words. Audio: too fast, unclear diction. Grammar: superficial, partial info on some points only. Exercises: more for show than to help you. Pictures: they may appeal to children or the young at heart. Final balance: very frustrating, wasted money. I hope my experience will be of use to other learners.

Portuguese is my third foreign language. I have read many foreign language courses, some good, some not so good. This one is not one of the best. The dialogues are reasonable. They resemble the dialogues in other courses like a BBC Get By course my mother bought in Europe early in the 1980s. A problem is that you cannot learn a language just by looking at the dialogues. The tapes are too fast for a beginner and you cannot catch what the speakers say. You are left with looking at the dialogues and trying to make sense of what they say. This is not easy either. The language notes are minimal. You are given very little guidance on the language itself. The little guidance you get in some cases comes under the wrong heading. The 'ir'+ main verb formation (eg eu vou visitar) is given the name of "simple future". The simple future (eu visitarei) is something quite different, not shown in this course. When you move to a more informative course, as I have done, you find out these inaccuracies. They can mislead a beginner who is not used to foreign language learning. If you are a reader turning to this course as a starting point, then you are being started on the wrong foot. The first thing you come across in this book and more than once (on the cover etc) is that this is a friendly introduction to Portuguese. In my view a friendly course is one that looks well after the learner. This one does not!

This book is too elementary to teach you anything. The dialogues may give you a sample of the kind of things you may need to say, but there is no real help with the language itself. There does not appear to be a plan behind the dialogues. I gave up and bought Elisabeth Smiths Instant Portuguese which is much more helpful. You can tell there is a plan in this one. You feel more confident you are in the hands of a good teaching tool.

Ward tries to reconcile materialism and Christianity--and fails. There are much better books on both sides. for the materialist side I would rather recommend Dawkins' The Blind Watchmaker or The selfish gene; Rushton's Race, Evolution and Behavior; Jared's The Real American Dilemma; Hawking's A Brief History of Time. This are all beter books from the materialist side. And for a book soundly reconciling Christianity with materialism, I like beter Duke's My Awakening.

Ward attempted to reconcile materialism and Christianity--and fails. There are much better books on both sides. for the materialist side I would rather recommend Dawkins' The Blind Watchmaker or The selfish gene; Rushton's Race, Evolution and Behavior; Jared's The Real American Dilemma; Hawking's A Brief History of Time. This are all beter books from the materialist side. And for a book soundly reconciling Christianity with materialism, I like beter Duke's My Awakening.

A modern view of the Christian faith that respects the latest findings of science. Mr. Ward's book is a delight to read and is easily accessible read for the layman. I highly recommend to those with an open mind.

The book description does not aptly describe the entire book. It describes the last 20 or pages. While I thought the story would be about what happens after Kate's stepfather died and Ethan's divorce, it was not to be. Almost the entire story, was about events leading up to that. Not very exciting events I might add. The character were poorly developed and while a lack of communication and misunderstandings might leading to an interesting story, this one did not. Until the very end of the book Kate and Ethan were also jumping to the wrong conclusion. Frankly I don't see how they even got together. Skip this book!

This was one of the worst books I have ever read. The synopsis on the back cover didn't even come close to the actual story. There was less than no plot and I spent the entire time waiting for something to happen. The characters were flat and the dialogue was trite. This is the only book by Joan Hohl I have ever read and will never read another.

An ok read, but I found it very frustrating because the book was nothing like what was written on the back cover synopsis.

According to the first paragraph on back cover the story is about Kate Quinn, an orphaned girl, who is raised by her wealthy stepfather. The young Kate feels lonely and out of place until she meets the boy next door (Ethan Winston), who becomes her best friend and soul mate. The second paragraph of the synopsis states that Kate, as the legal guardian of her half-sisters, must raise them alone just as Ethan is raising his young DAUGHTER alone (actually he has a son and not a daughter). Kate, who has always loved Ethan, suggests that they join forces and raise their dependents together.

Well needless to say I expected the book to be about Kate and Ethan's marriage and life together... but it was not. I found the book frustrating because I kept waiting for things to happen that would allow the two to get married. It sounds kind of morbid, but I kept waiting for Kate's stepfather to die so Kate would become her half-sisters guardian. I also kept waiting for something to happen to Ethan's wife (how could he marry Kate if he was already married to someone else). Well neither of those things happened until late in the book, and Kate and Ethan don't end up married until almost the very end.

I found myself on edge the entire time I was reading the book. When was this going to happen, when was that going to take place. I think if the synopsis had been worded differently, my impression of the book might have been totally different (but then again maybe not).

The book that is purchased should be the one listed. I purchased this book and the seller stated she will be sending me the 2nd edition.
An old edition is not bad , but there has been some changes

This book features a good selection of plays from a variety of times and places. I use it in my Western theatre history courses with good results. Since I use it in these "entry-level" classes, I sometimes wish it had a few more of the classics, but overall it's a well-balanced book that serves the students well. The plays that appear in translation are well chosen and easy to read without losing meaning.

This book is based on so many mistranslations (intentional and otherwise) of the Hebrew bible, it is literally useless, to say nothing of the ignorant premise of the book that Jews need to be converted to Christianity. I urge every Jew to read the following books. It is imperative that you are familiar with how the verses in "What to Say When They Say I'm Jewish" have been taken out of context, mistranslated, and used by these missionaries who prey on Jewish souls. (1.) "The Real Messiah: A Jewish Response to Missionaries" by Aryeh Kaplan (2.) "The Jew and the Christian Missionary: A Jewish Response to Missionary Christianity" by Gerald Segal (3.) "Faith Strengthened, 1,200 Biblical Refutations to Christian Missionaries" by Isaac Trok (4.) Judaism and Christianity: The Differences" by Trude Weiss-Rosmarin (5.) "The Myth of the Judeo-Christian Tradition" by Cohen (6.) "Jews and Christians: The Myth of a Common Tradition" by Jacob Neusner (7.) "When Prophecy Fails" by Leon Festinger (8.) "The Mythmaker: Paul and the Invention of Christianity" by Hyam Maccoby (9.) "Gospel Fictions" by Randel Helms (10.) "Beware of Soul Snatchers: How Jews Can Save Themselves From Missionary Assault" by Aaron Schwartzbaum and Suzanna Spiro. (11.) "Refutation of Missionaries" by Michoal Drazin (12.) "Their Hollow Inheritance" by Michoel Drazin, which you can also read in its entirety on the internet. Please also have a look at outreachjudaism website, jewsforjudaism website, and drazin website.

I am not Jewish so I can only speak from my own heritage, Christian. This book increased my knowledge of and respect for Jewish culture and heritage. It left me wanting to learn more and with a desire to be more sensitive to those of a different background than my own.

This is a story about an American Ambassador, his wife and son. Where the son so obsessively hates his father as to plot his death. So hates Americans that he commits terrorist acts.

Considering the times in which this story occurs (mid to late 1980s) and all the recent terrorist acts having taken place,

1979: Hostages taken at the U.S. Embassy in Iran.
1983: U.S. Embassy bombed in Beirut, Lebanon. 63 dead, including 17 Americans.
1983: U.S. Marine barracks bombed in Lebanon. 241 American dead.
1983: U.S. Embassy bombed in Kuwait. Five dead.
1984: U.S. Embassy annex bombed in Aukar, Lebanon. 24 dead, including two Americans.
1984: Kuwait Airways Flight 221 hijacked. Two Americans murdered.
1985: TWA Flight 847 hijacked. One American murdered.
1985: Achille Lauro ocean liner hijacked. One American murdered.
1985: Attacks on Rome and Vienna airports. 20 dead, including five Americans.
1986: Bombing of La Belle discotheque in West Berlin. One American dead.
1988: Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. 270 dead.
1980-1992: Dozens of Americans and other Westerners kidnapped and murdered in the Middle East, mostly in Lebanon.

it is totally inconceivable that the story would end as it does. I found lots of disappointing tidbits here and there that stretched credibility to the max (reasons for the sons extreme hate for father & American makes no sense, inexperienced ambassador and wife both able to elude experienced CIA followers, sons intellectual abilities and memory at the age of 5y/o). But even so it was a story beautifully told in the Just tradition. This man can write!

A story about an American Ambassador with a son who hates him to such an extreme that he plots his death.

Considering the times in which this story occurs (mid/late '80s) and the slew of recent terrorist acts,

1979: Hostages taken at the U.S. Embassy in Iran.
1983: U.S. Embassy bombed in Beirut, Lebanon. 63 dead, including 17 Americans.
1983: U.S. Marine barracks bombed in Lebanon. 241 American dead.
1983: U.S. Embassy bombed in Kuwait. Five dead.
1984: U.S. Embassy annex bombed in Aukar, Lebanon. 24 dead, including two Americans.
1984: Kuwait Airways Flight 221 hijacked. Two Americans murdered.
1985: TWA Flight 847 hijacked. One American murdered.
1985: Achille Lauro ocean liner hijacked. One American murdered.
1985: Attacks on Rome and Vienna airports. 20 dead, including five Americans.
1986: Bombing of La Belle discotheque in West Berlin. One American dead.
1988: Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. 270 dead.
1980-1992: Dozens of Americans and other Westerners kidnapped and murdered in the Middle East, mostly in Lebanon.

it is totally inconceivable that this story would end as it does.

I also found lots of disappointing tidbits here n there that stretched credibility to the max (reasons for the sons extreme hate for father & Americans makes no sense, inexperienced ambassador and wife both able to elude experienced CIA followers, sons intellectual abilities and memory at the ripe old age of 5 y/o, etc.) but even so it was a story beautifully told in the Just tradition. This man can write!

I felt compelled to write when I read the other reviews. I think Just is getting a bad rap. The novel is interesting and creative, and full of poetic prose. I enjoyed the characters. There's the bright but somehow clueless Ambassador and his wife who have lived their lives of adventure, giving their son everything that they would have wanted. But their son, raised overseas (Germany, France and Congo, if I recall correctly) in a "sophistocated" globe-trotting world, rebels against it all. The novel portrays a fascinating dichotomy of a patriotic American father, and his son, who chooses to become a German terrorist.

Entirely agree with the reviewers that indicate that this guide is a waste of time and money. I found that Rita Mulcahy's book is far superior to this book. Ward's guide only includes questions and does not provide any insight into how to prepare for the exam. In fact, the questions tend to indicate that much more preparation is required to pass the exam. Many of questions reference very specific and arcane management concepts that are not useful. I regret purchasing this book and fortunately came across Rita's book and focused on her preparation advice. I credit the Mulchahy book with passing the PMP exam with a 86% score.

Hi PMP friends:

I studied the PMBOK first and then use this book to TEST my knowledge and prepare for my PMP examknation which I am going to take in the middle of October/01.

I think this book is OK. I wish they cover more on the NON-PMBOK material. Not 2 sure I can pass the exam just by using this book.

Update: I just pass the PMP exam. I downgrade my rating on this book because it doesn't help 2 much in the actual exam.
I want to order "PMP EXAM PREP" but it is not available until the end of October/01, i.e., AFTER my PMP examination.

I can only wish myself good luck as there are so few PMP examination preparation material in the market, it makes the preparation really hard.

Update: I just pass the PMP exam. This guide doesn't help a lot.

Well written, easy to follow instructions with enough explanation of the "right" answers to make it easy to determine where you need extra study. Reference to standard textbooks are included. The questions have the same form as those on the exam. Studying PMI's PMBOK, taking the tests in this book, and following up with study to fill in your weak areas will prove to be of great help in passing the PMP exam. Because PMI is making changes to the exam, this book does not address all knowledge areas of the exam. This book is still useful because it addresses the main parts of the exam. Remember to check PMI's web site for the latest info on changes to the exam.

One would think that 300 pages discussing science theory would have some substance but this book could have been edited down to an eight page magazine article with little loss of content. And not a "heavy" magazine for scientists but a "popular" type magazine. I forced myself to stay with it hoping that the author would eventually get serious but the book stayed chatty and anecdotal to the end. According to the bio Mr. Ward is a science writer for the BBC and I did get the feeling of a TV narration purposely kept light in order not to scare off any viewers.

I found myself rereading series of pages because I had the feeling that I had missed something and then finding that I hadn't missed a thing, there was simply no content to retain. This happened repeatedly and made this book a real chore to finish and ultimately unrewarding. A shame too because the premises Mr. Ward teases the reader with are intriguing but the book fails miserably to live up to the promises made on the dust cover. Budding authors should seek out his agent however, that individual is well worth his fee!

British journalist Mark Ward's exposition of the theory of Universality and self-organized criticality (SOC) is little more than breathless hype purporting to show that fractal patterns and SOC are present in virtually every aspect of the biological and physical world. While this may or may not be true, Ward's largely anecdotal presentation, with its at times almost-mystical (although nonreligious) tone, unfortunately arouses the suspicion that the theory rests on a shaky scientific foundation. It should also not be too much to expect that a book devoted to the theory of Universality actually give an explicit definition of Universality, which Ward consistently fails to do. The book is introductory and nontechnical, so it is perhaps unfair to expect him to give a solid theoretical foundation to the theory, but the reader is left with an uneasy feeling that the gentleman "doth protest too much." Those interested in chaos theory, emergent phenomona, and SOC would do much better to read the books of Stuart Kauffmann and John Holland or the older nontechnical classic "Chaos: Making a New Science" by James Gleick.

The book is also plagued with numerous factual errors. (His reference to Beethoven's Eroica Symphony as a late work, produced in the same general period as the Ninth Symphony and the Diabelli Variations, has been cited in another review.) Additionally, Mr. Ward's writing style and his many lapses in grammar, syntax, and punctuation make the book irritating to read and make one wish that a good editor had taken the manuscript firmly in hand. Awkward shifts in tense within a single sentence, lack of subject-verb agreement, and Mr. Ward's apparent disdain for commas make what is actually a simple book a chore to read.

Science has opened the windows to the cold light of agnosticism by pushing back religion and diminishing the power of dogma. Universality in turn, shows that we are intimately connected to he universe in a most liberating sense. Universality emphasizes the interconnections between the elements of a system, whether these are the neurons in the brain or the droplets of water in a cloud. It also demonstrates that there is always a cause and that correlations can persist over very long spatial or temporal distances. The rise of universality is a result of the intellectual revolution started by chaos mathematics. In other words, universality is about the invisible force in the universe that is ubiquitous but still nameless, a force of order that is extremely powerful yet gentle. Ward examines the theories of universality, how they fit into a quest to discover the workings of the universe. He explores their possible limitations and considers what we can do with this new knowledge. He looks at the work of scientists Leo Kadanoff, Kenneth Wilson, Benoit Mandelbrot, Gene Stanley and Per Bak. The most interesting sections to me are those on the role of fractal patterns in our concept of beauty, fractals in the music of Bach and Beethoven and in Phil Thompson's work "Organised Chaos" of 1998 (which is based on the Mandelbrot set) and the determinable rhythms in finance and economics. Although modern physics is revealing more and more about particles (the very small) and the universe (the very large), it has not been focused on revealing much about the mundane and our everyday lives. Universality does this, in demonstrating how our bodies, our behaviour and nature are intimately connected. All of these different systems share a common principle, a single dynamic and a universal affinity. The author does not go into detailed discussions and theorising, for which I am grateful, as the text remains accessible enough for the general reader. What the book does reveal provides enough food for thought at this stage. The book includes portraits of the above-mentioned scientists, pictures of fractal patterns in leaves and lungs and migrating antelope, plus the fractal patterns in a work by Jackson Pollock. I recommend this book to all who are interested in cosmology, chaos theory and the golden mean (sacred geometry).

I picked this up in a bookstore for my English Composition CLEP test, and got through four pages, finding three typographical errors in the example questions--before I realized that they were unintentional. Unacceptable, for sure.

This book has too many typographical errors. I used 3 books,Cracking the Clep(Princeton),Clep English composition(Comex),and Barrons. The first two are GREAT books that provide the background(nuts and bolts)needed to pass the english test. Barrons has plenty of sample questions,but lacks english grammar review material. I would not recommend this book to anyone.

I bought this book as an impulse at a book store, wanting to CLEP the English Composition exam. Unfortunatly, this book is riddled with technical errors throughout. I took the initial exam, missing several questions like I suspected. But the reason I missed some of the questions was because the answers were wrong. At page 62, I had seen enough errors to make me want to return this book. Don't buy it, try something else.